Awakening to find a vast swath of time had passed was not so jarring for a second time. As before, Annastarria rose to back to the world within the temple she had crafted with her own two hands. This time she found it was in better upkeep. Plants had not grown wild and when she stepped out beyond she found herself look out over the glittering astral lights across Aeternus which told her that the school she'd had bult was still functioning. The Eternal City itself was larger, there were several stone buildings and paved roads laid out now, but it was a far cry from being a massive metropolis. Still, there was progress.

Below Annastarria found her arcane school. It now had walls to keep the wind at bay and to differentiate spaces, but there was no roof in order to not separate oneself from the heavens. In the intervening years the number of pupils had grown, though the only one that was still the same after so long was High Arcansit Xeves. As heir of Aeon time had not touched him. He greeted the return of his god warmly, though with more than touch of melancholy. "My Lady, I am pleased to see you return to us again. We could use your presence in these dark times."

The Heir went on to tell the tale. In the passing decades and centuries the Aethereal had continued to thrive and prosper across the plains of Aeon. So much so that space began to be a concern. The realm was only so large and soon the Aethereal encountered something they'd not know previously in their history. Scarcity. There was not enough game to hunt, not enough edible foliage to forage. There began to be hunger and starvation. The Aethereal had then turned to one of their god's lessons to solve the problem, they took up the spears they had practiced with and the blades and turned them on their kin. Thus feuds were fought, skirmishes between tribes and on a few occasions even outright war. The irony was, these wars had actually alleviated some of the pressure as each death meant one less mouth to feed. Those that had won had accessible to the choicest hunting grounds and most fertile valleys, those who lost were pushed into less desirable areas, but had less need for resources.

These bloody feuds had been fought for the last several hundred years. Aeternus had been left in peace, considered holy ground by all the tribes. But now it was rarely visited as while the peace was honored within the city, few wanted to risk being ambushed when they left the safe haven. "They consider me a neutral arbitrator," the High Arcanist explained, "But my council cannot produce food and so the conflict continues." That had left Aeternus as an island in the tumultuous times, but relatively insignificant to the events unfolding across the realm.

The tribes themselves were almost entirely different from those of the past. Hardship had caused them to splinter into smaller groups initially as they tried to sustain themselves, then centuries of conflict had hardened they separations.

Most successful of the current tribes were the Undarin, a fiercely militant tribe that would slay other tribes on sight. They held a stable piece of land and had maintained control of it for over a century now. Then there were the Cantreki, thieves who would sneak onto other tribes territory and get what sustenance they could before being forced away. The Ereger relied on traps and ambushes, often attacking other tribes and then demanding rations in exchange for releasing them safely. Lastly, the World Walkers were the only tribe whose identity remained unchanged from long ago. They were a shell of their former selves, they abstained from the conflict entirely and had managed to withdraw into the Argent Sands, despite how dangerous it was, there a handful of them managed to eke out an existence.

Annastarria had been watching her borders fearful of violence far realms, but that violence had come from within. The God of Eternity had heard of how her brother's domain had suffered from being a closed system with finite resources, now she was finding her own realm experiencing the same fate.  But one thing was certain, Annastarria had asked her people to focus on ways of making war and they certainly had done so. After centuries of prolonged conflict the Aethereal were experienced in committing violence.
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:54, Mon 25 July 2022.

Annastarria had hoped to awaken to a golden age for her Realm and her Children and the first sight of her city had given her hope that such was indeed the case. That hope was dashed when Xeves told her what had transpired during her long slumber.

"I'm sorry, my dear friend. I had planned for threats without but had not anticipated threats within. The Aethereal turned the lessons I began on each other which I had never thought could happen," she said in growing anger at the thought of war amongst her people.

"It is time, past time, that I expand the borders of Aeon to accommodate more Aethereal. I can do this with my own power but I shall also need Essence, those remnants of primordial power I have used but once and I know exactly who I shall set to the task of finding it."

She took off that night in search of the Undarin and announced her displeasure with a roar that echoed across Aeon along with a gout of blue flame that turned night into dark day. She landed with a crash that shook them to their bones and kept her true form as she walked to their settlements.

"Who amongst you leads the Undarin?" She asked in a tone that brooked no refusal. "Attend me now to explain yourself and pray I find it satisfactory!"

She had never before had to discipline her children but now she was quite wroth with them and would do whatever she needed to resolve this new, dark age she found herself in.

With some direction from Xeves, the God of Eternity took to the sky and set out to find the Undarin. Wheeling through the star filled heavens she followed the well worn paths of the tribes. They had changed in the intervening centuries. There were more of the dirt paths, they zigzagged across Aeon in meandering twists and turns whereas in the previous age they had been straight routes. Another sign of the nomads roaming further and further trying to find food. Following these paths, she eventually came across the Undarin.

Their tribe was smaller than the Children of Dawn from the previous era, but they were the largest of this time period. It was another sign of how the tribes had fragmented. Flying down and landing in their camp there was shock at the sudden arrival, but quickly the surprise transformed into elation as the Aethereal realized what this meant. These Aethereal were strong, their constellations glowed brightly and they bore weapons with an easy confidence that spoke of their frequent use. At her command, a pair came forward, unlike the young and hale warriors, the two leaders who emerged were an old Aethereal man and woman whose bodies were dense constellations of dim stars to reflect their long experience.

"We are the Grandkeepers of the Undarin," the woman called out with a reedy voice worn from time. "Praise be that we lived to see the return of our Great Lady!" she proclaimed happily. "I am Undessa."

"And I am Kentok," the man said. The two bowed low to the ground. "We welcome your return. We have kept our people strong and ready for your arrival. Our spears are sharp and our shields sturdy, ever ready to defend against the invaders you have spoken of."

The Goddess of Eternity stalked forward and the ground trembled with her passing. Her eyes lit the clearing in sullen blue and her teeth drew back from fangs as long as her Children were tall.

"You have turned those weapons on your brothers and sisters. I am greatly angered by this; I told you the threat would come from without but you turned killed your own, my Children!"

Her vast wings rose as she mantled, her black scales seeming to expand as she grew even larger.

"You, the Cantreki, and the Ereger have all committed acts of kinslaying whilst I slept and I have awakened to pass judgement on all of you." She looked at each one of her wayward children before turning her gimlet gaze on the speaker.

"No more shall you raise arms against other Aethereal on pain of final judgement from me. Eternity shall not greet those I judge but oblivion. You are charged with ranging over Aeon and finding Essence which I shall use to expand the borders of my Realm which shall ensure all of my Children shall not want. You shall continue to train in the arts of war and magic but never again shall you raise those spears or swords on your kin."

She stepped forward until she loomed over the speaker and lowered her head so she could see herself reflected in the blue sun her eyes had become.

"Have I made myself clear, Grandkeepers of the Undarin?" She asked in a deep, rolling growl.

The proclamation was made and the Undarin were clearly taken aback that their actions had displeased the god. "Of course, Great Lady," Undessa agreed, bowing low. Her partner followed suit. "As you will it." The words were said, but the trepidation amongst the tribe was palpable. This was how they had survived and even thrived during these hard times. They were told to practice war, but not make war? The conflicting messages, along with the scarcity of resources, were clearly a sign of tension, but the God of Eternity said she would provide, so they trusted her.

The word spread across Aeon that Annastarria had returned and she was demanding a cessation of the conflicts between the tribes. Outright violence soon stopped, but that did not solve the underlying concern of resources. The Undarin left the territory they'd worked hard to hold and went roaming in search of the Essence they'd been tasked to find.

But this was not the first time a tribe had been asked to find Essence. The World Walkers had been given a similar job in the last Age. This new hunt was proving to be similarly elusive. A years went back with no Essence, then three, then three more. Nearly a decade was passing since the proclamation to end the warring of Aeon. The conflicts had ceased, but new Aethereal continued to be born and food became increasingly scarce. Famine was becoming common and tribes were soon setting schedules for which days its members were able to receive rations. The Cantreki redoubled their thieving ways and were the only tribe not actively starving, though it came at the cost of their kindred. Hunger was leading to a spreading discontent amongst the Aethereal.

It was becoming clear now, after the long hunt by the World Walkers and now the Undarin, there was no Essence left to be easily uncovered in Aeon. To find more of the precious material Annastarria would have to look beyond the borders of her home realm.

The Goddess stood at the top of her mountain and overlooked her city. She had Xeves by her side and smiled as the great form of Aetheria lit up the nighttime sky as she flew overhead.

"I have erred, Xeves. I have erred and my people have suffered. The quest for Essence has failed again for there is none to be found on Aeon. It was leftover from the primordial forces that shaped the Realms when the World Tree was born and now it is gone. Gone from here, at least. There are other places I can go to find it but that way is fraught with peril but I can do no less for my Children. For now thought..."


She raised her hands and summons forth great blue and purple flame. Her focus narrowed until all she could see was the end result of the great Working she made now. She drew deeply from the energy of Aeon as well as her own power and that of her Children and began making life.

Across Aeon there rose ten massive quadrupedal animals who shook the world with their passing. They stood a hundred metres tall at the shoulder and were heavily muscled. One of them would take a tribe to take down but it would feed that tribe for weeks, longer if they cured and salted the meat. The organs could be cooked and eating, the hides and bones used for things the tribes needed. The creatures were not aggressive by nature but they could defend themselves ferociously so skill and tactics would be needed to bring them down. They would breed and provide generations of sustenance for her Children whilst she sought out the power she needed to expand her Realm.

She sighed and sat down when the working was done. "There. 10 new creatures now walk the surface of Aeon and shall provide much for the Aethereal until I find Essence. In time they shall breed and continue to provide. I will make companions to them in the waters and, in time more that fly. My Children shall not know famine again. I charge your Tribe as stewards of these creatures. Make sure they are not over-hunted. Their population needs to be kept in balance so as to make sure all my Children can enjoy the bounty I provide."

She looked at him and smiled. "Send out Arcanists across Aeon to let the Tribes know what I have done. I must go to the place of gathering and confer with my siblings. I think it's time for another adventure."

She remained there, looking over the glittering lights of her city whilst part of her detached and soared towards the Astral Lounge.

Drawing upon her reserves of souls, Annastarria created great lumbering beasts. These large and hardy beasts were all muscle and nutritious fats. They would be a rich feast when they were slain. The threat of starvation was pushed out several months, but these creatures were a temporary measure. With the size of the tribes, the demands of hunger were far greater than beasts of this size could reproduce. But to help avoid them all being slain in short order, Xeves was appointed to tend to the creatures along with the other arcanists.

"I will make it our duty to keep the beasts from all being consumed." The High Arcanist said. Classes were stopped and all the arcanists pooled their efforts to corral two of the hulking beasts to an area close to Aeternus where they could be more carefully monitored and protected.

Today the crisis had been postponed, but it was not yet averted. Splitting herself, Annastarria sent an iteration of her divinity back to the Astral Lounge. There she would look for a more permanent solution to the current shortages faced by Aeon.

"Thank you, High Arcanist. This is but a stopgap but it will keep my Children from famine until I can find a more long-term solution. There is Essence in the World Tree but getting it is difficult. I would rather not make enemies of any of the other Gods by invading their realms and I will not partake in the crime of Amaranth. That is a hideous act that scars the soul of any who partake," Annastarria said in a tone that brooked no refusal.

"For now I charge you with continuimg the pursuit of arcane power and knowledge, increasing the knowledge of Astronomy and the cosmos, and the expansion of the library. Make sure your Arcanists also continue their study of war and defence. The outside threat remains."

Purple fire flared as she fashioned a long, curved blade out of arcane energy. "The sword. An elegant weapon for a civilised people. A fitting companion to the spear."

She made a few slashes in the air and nodded before letting the blade fall away. "Our arcane attacks will keep our enemies at bay. Our spears shall fell them as they approach and make a wall of power they will need to breach when our shields are locked in formation. Then our swords finish them as they close."

While a second version of herself was abroad, starting to begin the hunt for solution to Aeon's problems, the version that remained at home took time with the High Arcanist and his pupils. Over the coming months Annastarria would walk with them and train them, she espoused a view of melding arcane power with the sweep and slash of their weapons. It was a melding of two arts to try and make something grander than the sum of their parts. The courtyard of the Astral Conclave, what the Aethereal had taken to calling the school of the arcanists, were soon lit up with flashes of blue and purple as the arcanists would practice their strikes and blocks while their armaments lit up with fire.

+20% Arcane Combat advancement

This style of war took the potential and magic and mixed it with the physicality of combat. While a purely academic study of magic may have revealed new nuances to the arcane, it would require greater skill to achieve. Applying magic to violence was simpler, more primal, this simplicity made it easier to learn. Soon the arcanists were learning to leaving flaming trails in the air after each slash of their spear or sword, these searing after images would burn those who pushed the attack, serving as both a defensive and offense implement simultaneously.

Meanwhile across Aeon the first two Beasts had been brought down and the tribes were eating well. The atmosphere across Aeon was one of celebration and relief as food was now plentiful again. The wiser Aethereal knew better than to celebrate too soon though. What had started as ten great Beasts were already down to eight. Starvation remained a distant threat, but never an absent one.

The Goddess of Eternity was pleased at the progress her Children made. They would be formidable opponents indeed should anyone be foolish enough to invade. During those months she also made sure to concentrate on pure magic as well as Astronomy as she didn't want her children to fall behind in other areas. The practice of writing continued and developed from runes on rock slates to papyri and, eventually, the development of paper and the continuation of a runic language not just for magic but for a system of writing that matched their language. She introduced mathematics at this time, believing a rounded education was important for all of her children to learn and grow.

As the great creatures fell she made two more to replace them but continued to look for other solutions to the issue of hunger.

The City of the Divine was one such avenue she could explore so she set off to look upon the work of her siblings and learn what she could.